Typical production plasma cutters are designed for large-scale, industrial applications where designs are not repeatedly altered. Most compact plasma cutting tables are essentially miniature versions of the production ones, with many of the same drawbacks, which include being generally limited to cutting flat (generally un-bent) parts and not being easily adaptable to make variations in cuts and/or parts cut.
Typical production plasma cutters employ gantry systems that enclose the material sheet. Known cantilever setups generally translate in one cut direction only with the material that is being processed, generally tubing, continually passed under the cantilever nozzle. A standalone, cantilevered setup is desired where the workpiece does not move and the relative position of the cutter is completely controlled by an overhead drive arrangement.
The only known uses of plasma delivery are thru either manual hand-operated torches or machine torches equipped for installation into third-party CNC tables and machines. Both styles include a nozzle body receiving typical plasma wear consumables such as, but not limited to, tips, electrodes, and swirl rings. The torches are also permanently assembled with a bulk length of cable generally containing the necessary gas hose, voltage wire, and feedback wire. These torch configurations make implementation into a compact cutting apparatus cumbersome, expensive, and drivers of increased space envelopes for operation.
Alternative shape cutting machines for metal include punch presses and ironworkers. These machines require the use of die sets for corresponding shapes, and as such as are not suited for the evolving needs of custom computer-designed profiles beyond singular round holes. These machines are also bulky with limited material thickness capabilities based on hydraulic tonnage. The lowest power plasma supply generators that are commercially available easily exceed these typical thickness limitations.
It would be desirable to provide a simple, compact cutting apparatus adapted to the needs of the typical shop environment and portable to job sites. A flexible, on-demand plasma cutting machine is desired suitable for a multi-user, multi-material environment.